It became five defeats in six games for Altrincham following this narrow defeat at The Shay.

After a drab first half, which ended with Jake Cooper blazing off target with Alty's best chance of the half, Halifax took an early lead after the interval. Capello got up the left and his low cross was turned in by Hmami (49 mins).

Altrincham equalised when Crankshaw cut in from the left and fired a superb 25-yard shot into the far top corner of the net (55 mins). It was a deserved equaliser.

Capello was also the instigator of Halifax's second goal. Another cross by him from the left was turned towards goal by Harris, with Hutchinson making a good save, only for Hugill to score his side's second close range goal from the loose ball (64 mins).

Altrincham made five changes from the bench bench and deep into added time they had three shots in succession as the ball pinged around the Halifax penalty area but goalkeeper Johnson kept them out.

SCORERS:

• 49 mins: Josh HMAMI(FC Halifax Town 1 ALTRINCHAM 0)
• 55 mins: Olly CRANKSHAW (FC Halifax Town 1 ALTRINCHAM 1)
• 64 mins: Will HUGILL (FC Halifax Town 2 ALTRINCHAM 1)

REFEREE: Mr Zac Kennard-Kettle

ATTENDANCE: 1,813 (313 in away section)

TEAM NEWS:

The manager also faced limitations in the changes he could make with eight players out with injuries last time out. They were Lewis BANKS, Sam BARNES, Louie FALLON, Elliot OSBORNE, Sam REED, Ethan ROSS, Billy SASS-DAVIES and loanee Billy WATERS.

For the match, Altrincham made two changes to their line-up; Jake Cooper replaced Dan Sassi and a recovered Elliott Osborne came in for Jimmy Knowles. So all three of the summer forward signings (Gale, Knowles and Ward) were omitted together for the first time this season.

Manager Neil Gibson was serving a touchline ban for his red card incurred at Telford, so Lee Jones took charge from the technical area. He was assisted by Jon McCarthy a former Northern Ireland international and EFL player who has also managed Chester FC.

For the Shaymen, Warburton replaced Wright, who moved to the bench.

LINE-UP:

FC HALIFAX TOWN (All blue) 1. Sam Johnson (c), 36. Thierry Latty-Fairweather, 3. Adam Alimi-Adetoro, 15. Will Smith, 11. Angelo Cappello , 30. Cody Johnson, 27. Jay Turner-Cooke, 17. Owen Bray, 19 AJ Warburton, 8. Josh Hmami, 9. Will Harris. Subs : 7. Max Wright, 16. Jevon Mills, 22. David Kawa, 31. Owen Devonport, 4. Will Hugill, 12. Nat Ford, 5. Shaun Hobson

ALTRINCHAM (Black shirts with yellow diagonals, yellow shorts and black socks): 30. Luke Hutchinson, 23. Tylor Golden, 5. Jake Cooper, 4. Lewis Baines (c), 33. Eddy Jones, 22. Tom Crawford, 8. Isaac Marriott, 6. Elliot Osborne, 14. Matty Kosylo, 17. Lucas Weaver, 11. Jimmy Knowles. Subs: 9. James Gale, 10. Keaton Ward, 20. Kahel Reddin, 18. Owen German, 40. Charlie Kirk, 41. Max Beddow (gk), 34. Dan Sassi.

Following a comprehensive home defeat to Rochdale and an ignominious exit from the FA Trophy at Telford, life got no easier for Neil Gibson and his team with a visit to The Shay.

REPORT:

Altrincham kicked off and were to start the better of the two sides and they were encouraged early on when a Weaver cross was dropped by goalkeeper Johnson and was grateful for a team-mate's help to avoid the embarrassment of conceding (4 mins).

After Latty-Fairweather had advanced on the left, he needed protracted treatment and was unable to continue (6-8 mins). Halifax's substitute was not ready and they played on with ten men for several minutes. Finally Hugill was brught on (10 mins).

This change meant that Capello went to left wing-back.

There was then another stoppage as Hutchinson sat down for treatment (14 mins). The cynical would assume that this was a "tactical injury" to allow a team huddle but this time it may have been genuine given signs of a leg problem later in the game for the keeper.

Much of the first quarter of the game was played in the Halifax half with Alty enjoying plenty of possession but failing to create anything significant from it. A weak 25 yarder from Crankshaw, which was easily saved, was the best effort (21 mins).

Inevitably Halifax started to grow into the game and Baines soon had to block a Harris effort before a Hugill cross skimmed off the top of Bray's head in the Alty goalmouth. Soon a ball over the top needed Baines, again, to block a Harris effort (29 mins).

WHen a flying Weaver was clearly brought down, Mr Kettle bewilderingly failed to blow his whistle (28 mins). The first corner of the afternoon went to Halifax on the half-hour mark but came to nothing.

Mr Kettle then ignored another apparent foul, this time on Kosylo, who belatedly was being booed by his former Halifax supporters. Kosylo of course, had been sent off in his last two encounters with his former employers (33 mins).

Hutchinson soon had to make a decent save, pushing a Cody Johnson effort round the post for a corner (34 mins). Another home corner soon arrived after that (35 mins).

It was a minute before the end of the first 45 before Altrincham gained their first corner, from a Weaver cross.

After this Halifax got forward past a Kosylo challenge and, although Mr Kettle did not signal "play on", at the end of the move he went back and booked Kosylo to the baying delight of the home crowd (45 mins).

Deep into added time a very much overhit back pass by Capello gave Alty an unexpected corner (45+5 mins). From this the ball was nodded on but the incoming Jake Cooper slashed wildly at the ball and it flew well off target from what had been Alty's clearest chance of an underwhelming half of football.

Halifax kicked off the second half and, inside four minutes, they had taken the lead. Capello got up the left and his low ball into the centre of the goalmouth was turned into the net by Hmami as Baines arrived fractionally too late to stop him converting a simple chance (49 mins).

Altrincham responded by winning a corner off Cody Johnson, which Crawford headed narrowly wide (53 mins). However, they soon scored an equaliser when Crankshaw dribbled in from the left and hit a superb 25 yarder into the top, far corner of the Halifax net (55 mins).

It was the winger's fifth goal in four outings.

After Harris had drawn a simple save from Hutchinson, Alty found themselves in a defensive mess following an advance by Bray but the visitors were saved by a foul on Kosylo. The booked Kosylo was then replaced by Ward (62 mins).

Johnson, the Halifax keeper who had several shaky moments in this game, now got into a mess with a defender with the harrying Weaver almost taking advantage.

However, Capello now got up the left once more and again put in a low cross. Harris got to the ball and forced a parry from Hutchinson but the looose ball fell for Hugill to tap into the net from a similar spot from where the first goal had been scored (64 mins).

The sides traded a corner apiece before Wright replaced Bray for the Shaymen (70 mins). Next, Kirk came on for Crawford (72 mins) and Reddin for Weaver (73 mins).

Although Isaac Marriott won his side a corner, Altrincham were not creating chances that would encourage their supporters to believe a recovery was likely, whilst Halifax seemed content to sit on their lead rather than add to it before Adam Lakeland made a conservative change, bringing on Kawa for striker Harris (83 mins).

Substitute Reddin was making little impact and, after his electric start to the season, he seems to have lost some of his impact.

Alty's final shake of the dice was the double change of Knowles and Sassi for Jones and Baines (88 and 89 mins respectively).

Warburton's foul on Crankshaw earned him a booking (90 mins) and Cooper was also cautioned for a transgression.

. Four added minutes were computed in which a Crankshaw shot was tipped over the bar for an Altrincham corner (90+1 mins).

Altrincham almost retrieved a draw following this as a goalmouth scramble saw Johnson have to make three blocks in succession from Osborne and then Kirk (twice). It would not have been a travesty had they done so for the Shaymen were far from impressive in their performance.

And so, Altrincham fell to a fifth defeat in six matches in all competitions.

With just six points between Alty and the relegation places and a daunting list of fixtures in January, Alty face a tense start to 2026. Before 2025 ends, however, their next challenge is at home to third-placed York City.